All of this unexpected time at home has allowed me to get a good start on my spring cleaning, that usually does not happen until at least fall, if that! Okay, so maybe it happens once every THREE falls! Yeah. It’s gotten a little carried away around here. Something I’m even worse at is involving my kids in spring cleaning. I kind of just want them out of my hair because I think it will go more quickly. While that may have been true when they were younger, I think I’m remiss to think that spring cleaning is something I should be flying solo on. It’s time to include my kids in spring cleaning!
My children need to learn the value of organization, pairing down, and just plain deep cleaning! It’s a fact of life and a skill that their spouses will appreciate, if they learn it well. After all, the reason I am capable is because I was expected to help out around the house and to do it up to my mom’s standards. My mom knew how to include her kids in more than just spring cleaning!
I know I need to teach my children how to do their chores well and how to deep clean. (For more on the importance of kids doing chores, check out this post). This is another thing that I am not good at! I am severely lacking in patience and frankly, care, in this department. I don’t like to nag, so I don’t. My kids do their chores and if they haven’t done it well, I typically tell them what they didn’t get done, but I don’t worry about it too much. My mom was extremely good at teaching us and making sure we did our chores well. She also loves an exceptionally clean house and she enjoys cleaning. Not me.
This is definitely an area that needs improvement for my kids and me!
So, I’m finding ways to include my kids in spring cleaning. Life skills are on the line! Well, not exactly. I truly believe that adults who have not been taught how to clean will figure enough out on their own, but it can take a while to learn. So let’s give our kids a leg up and teach them now!
Five Spring-Cleaning Jobs Your Kids Can Do:
- Sort—Even young children can sort. They can sort items by color or they can sort toys by type (i.e. animals in this pile; small dolls in this pile). Do you remember the show, Clean Sweep? They made three piles—“Keep,” “Sell,” and “Donate.” Kids as young as five could help with this project of pairing down and separating. Teaching them to do this once or twice a year fosters a healthy habit.
- Organize—I’m a firm believer in “skin in the game” when it comes to college, activities, possessions, etc., but this has never carried over to chores and cleaning in my mind before. I had a light bulb moment recently though.
I read an article about a team that went to a small village in Africa and dug a well for them. The people of the village were elated to have clean water; however, after a few months, when the team returned to check on things, the well had fallen into complete disrepair. The villagers had not maintained the well at all. The team quickly realized that it was because the villagers didn’t have skin in the game. They had not been a part of digging the well or making it work in the first place, and therefore, didn’t take any pride in the well.
I think the same goes for our children. If we involve them in organizing their rooms and pairing down their items, they may be more likely to keep things a little more organized and tidier. It’s worth a shot, right?
- Dust/Vacuum—Swiffer and Pledge make such easy dusters that children can easily get involved. By the time I was six or seven, I could take things off my dresser, wipe it down, wipe each item off, and put it all back. If your children have lots of breakable knick-knacks, have them dust the baseboards and moldings instead.
I have a child who loves to vacuum. I think he likes the instant gratification of it. He is the perfect guy for the job of vacuuming out the registers, in the corners, at the thresholds of where different flooring meets, behind and under the piano, and every other little crevice that does not get our attention usually.
- Clean Out and Under the Refrigerator—Older kids can easily learn to pull out the science experiments, wash the shelves down, and wipe the lids of the condiments off before putting them back in the fridge.
Then, pull that fridge out and have your child start by cleaning up all the Nerf Rival balls, superballs, marbles, etc. (Can you tell we live in an old, unlevel house?) Wipe up the dust with a microfiber rag, or vacuum it, and then show your child how to wash or mop the floor.
- Give Away—My children love to give things away when they have someone in mind. Recently, my daughter said, “I think I’ll save these, but I want to give those to a friend” when sorting through toys to keep or get rid of. If you are sorting and purging, your children will be much more willing to part with things if they have a friend in mind to give them to. Then, when it comes time to actually give the items away, let your child do it! She will take joy in giving and that will keep him or her motivated to give away next time too.
As children get older, they also need more responsibility. Our kids need to learn that with more privileges come more responsibility. My dad always said, “work is your friend.” It annoyed me to death as a teenager, and now I’m saying it to my kids. So typical. A good work ethic is also your friend.
And on that note, interestingly enough, I didn’t get this post written before church today and I was frustrated; however, God’s timing was better than mine…again!
We’ve been studying the book of Ruth and today’s sermon was about Ruth’s character and hard work ethic. Ruth knew the laws that had been set forth in Exodus and Leviticus about portions of the fields being left for the poor to glean. She asked permission to go behind the harvesters and glean the field to provide food for her mother-in-law and herself. Her work ethic was so different than most women had that Boaz noticed. It stood out to him.
Moms, let’s teach our children to have a hard work ethic. It starts by involving them in the work it takes to run a household! Let’s stop waiting until they’re older; until they can be of more help; until they can do a better job, etc. (Those are all my reasons.) Now is the time to teach them not only what it takes, but that they have what it takes!